Any hopes shippers have for relief from record-high ocean-freight rates are stranded at sea. Growing demand for China-made goods ahead of the holiday shopping season threatens to overwhelm container-shipping operations, the WSJ Logistics Report’s Costas Paris writes, and there’s little new capacity in the pipeline to ease backlogs anytime soon. That’s because shipowners largely held back on ordering vessels over the past year as the pandemic upended supply chains, and only recently started bolstering their order books. As a result, new ships won’t arrive soon, even as congestion ties up vessels off ports in Asia, North America and Europe with lengthy delays that are effectively consuming capacity. The Freightos Baltic Index shows daily rates from China to the U.S. West Coast are up 66% since January and more than 400% since early last year, pricing that’s likely to stay elevated through the peak shipping season.

Ford’s latest production announcement is sending new shock waves through the automotive sector. The car maker says it is cutting output across more than a half-dozen U.S. factories in July, the WSJ’s Mike Colias and Nora Naughton report, in a sign that the global semiconductor shortage is taking a heavier toll on automotive manufacturing. Executives from Ford and other auto makers have said the chip shortage should begin to ease in the third quarter but caution the situation is fluid. Many are prioritizing production of their most profitable vehicles and taking other steps to keep supply chains moving even if that doesn’t keep up with rising consumer demand. Automotive transports by rail have been flat over recent weeks. Ford’s pickup truck factories in Michigan, Kentucky and Missouri will reduce or stop production for much of July, while an Explorer plant in Chicago will shut for the entire month.

U.S. exports of propane are rising fast, and so are prices for the fuel. Key futures pricing measures are roughly twice their levels of the past two summers, the WSJ’s Ryan Dezember reports, and government analysts project retail prices will likely be up 14% this winter over last year’s level. The growing cost is the result of market dynamics that have taken hold since the U.S. in recent years became the world’s top exporter of the easily bottled fuel by muscling aside countries including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Nigeria in Asian markets. Although demand for most fuels plummeted in 2020, outbound propane cargoes rose 13% to a new record. The exports along with February’s freeze across parts of the U.S. and lighter production during the pandemic have helped deplete domestic stocks. U.S. propane inventories are down 17% from a year ago and about 15% below the five-year average.

A measure of U.S. consumer confidence jumped in June to its highest level since the pandemic. (MarketWatch)

Amazon is seeking recusal of new Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman Lina Khan from antitrust investigations of the company. (WSJ)

Boeing  is expected to name Brian West, a veteran of engine maker General Electric, as its next chief financial officer. (WSJ)

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Global raised about $4.4 billion in its initial public offering. (WSJ)

General Mills says consumer demand remains volatile this year amid rising commodity and shipping costs. (Dow Jones Newswires)

The Department of Transportation gave out $905 million in infrastructure grants, including funding for freight projects in Georgia and Iowa. (Associated Press)

Logistics constraints including “out of control” trucking rates are hampering U.S. steel manufacturers. (S&P Global Platts)

Mobile phone makers Nokia, Samsung and others are setting up manufacturing ventures in Bangladesh to avoid the country's high import tariffs. (Nikkei Asia)

Winnebago Industries is trying to increase production to meet a backlog of “almost a year's worth of demand” for motorhomes. (Supply Chain Dive)

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia is winding down its $2 billion shipping portfolio and withdrawing from the sector. (Lloyd’s List)

A new report says detention and demurrage charges for holding container shipments doubled over the past year. (Journal of Commerce)

Lloyd’s Register is selling its business assurance and inspection services division to focus on maritime business. (Maritime Executive)

Rail equipment manufacturer FreightCar America is one of several companies that received Paycheck Protection Program loans before laying off workers. (ProPublica)

Cargo and passenger flights world-wide remain 37% behind the pre-pandemic level two years ago. (Dow Jones Newswires)

Cummins is taking a 50% stake in Momentum Fuel Technologies as part of a joint venture to create natural gas fuel delivery systems. (Heavy Duty Trucking)

Refrigerated transport specialist Hirschbach Motor Lines is acquiring Lessors in a deal that brings in 200 drivers. (Fleet Owner)

Drone delivery startup Zipline raised $250 million in a funding round valuing the business at $2.75 billion. (TechCrunch)

Germany’s Hellmann Worldwide Logistics plans to launch cross-border drone delivery service next year. (Splash 247)

Paul Page is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Write to him at paul.page@wsj.com.

Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team: @PaulPage, @jensmithWSJ. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.